1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to an improved radial engine.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Radial engines per se are known in the art. However, the radial engines known in the art suffer from various disadvantages. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 1,445,474 teaches a radial engine with rollers at the ends of the piston rods following a cam. The rollers are not guided by the peripheral edge of the cam so that the action of the cam on the rollers will produce large lateral forces on the pistons which can in turn introduce lateral forces of the pistons on the respective cylinders. U.S. Pat. No. 1,708,611 teaches a very complicated structure which is, therefore, not rendered practical.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,774,047 also teaches a cam and roller arrangement. As in other such cam and roller arrangements, there is the problem of rotational speed of the rollers between top dead-center and bottom dead-center of the engine. Also, as in the U.S. Pat. No. 1,445,474, there are problems concerning lateral forces on the pistons. U.S. Pat. No. 1,780,854 teaches an arrangement wherein the ends of the piston rods are pivotally connected near the periphery of eccentrics.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,612,985 (Quick) teaches a radial engine wherein a multi-layer connecting ring is provided on an eccentric shaft and the piston rods extending from each piston have arcuate shoes adapted to follow in different concentric paths in the connecting wheel. The shoes are fixed to the connecting rods and the connecting rods are pivoted to the piston heads. This arrangement causes problems in that the shoe fixed to the piston rod has a curvature the center of which will change depending on the angle of the piston rod relative to the axis between the center of the piston and the center of the connecting ring. The clinching moment of the shoe in the connecting ring and grooves will be relatively great causing the apparatus to be inoperative. The complexity of manufacturing such an engine with different length piston rods and the complicated connecting ring adds to the disadvantages which would result from this construction.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,783,589 teaches an arrangement wherein a pivotally connected shoe at the end of a piston rod is guided in the tracks of an eccentric. However, because each shoe has to travel the entire periphery of the eccentric, the velocity of the shoe relative to the eccentric is unrealistically high. U.S. Pat. No. 2,105,846 teaches another arrangement which is also very complicated and, therefore, not very practical. Finally, U.S. Pat. No. 2,120,657 teaches a further cam and roller arrangement and suffers the same disadvantages as previously mentioned cam and roller arrangements.